‘It Does Get Better’: Advocates Address Suicide in LGBT Community

Former NFL player Ryan O'Callaghan surprised fans when he revealed his darkest secret; he is a gay man. The offensive lineman revealed to Outsports he planned to kill himself after he retired because of his sexuality. O’Callaghan is not alone. Deric Metzger calls his former boyfriend, Brian Shaughnessy a “survivor.” Dr. Jack Drescher, a clinical professor of psychiatry at New York Medical College who was on the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) V workgroup on sexual and gender identity disorders, told Fox News that while many mental illnesses are genetic, there are psychosocial aspects to mental health. “If you stress a person with a vulnerability for depression enough, they can get very severely depressed and become suicidal,” Drescher said. “If you belong to a stigmatized minority group, whether it’s a racial minority group or… a gender or sexual minority group, there is an increased risk because there are all of these…moments in your life where you may be subject to stressers that the majority does not usually experience on a regular basis.”